diff --git a/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreview.css.tsx b/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreview.css.tsx
index 9f39cc82b..480a4eb96 100644
--- a/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreview.css.tsx
+++ b/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreview.css.tsx
@@ -197,6 +197,80 @@ export const MediaPlayButton = style([
   },
 ]);
 
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+// Inline video embed (YouTube / Vimeo) — media-forward click-to-play facade
+// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+export const EmbedMediaLandscape = style([
+  DefaultReset,
+  {
+    position: 'relative',
+    width: '100%',
+    aspectRatio: '16 / 9',
+    overflow: 'hidden',
+    backgroundColor: color.Surface.Container,
+  },
+]);
+
+export const EmbedMediaPortrait = style([
+  DefaultReset,
+  {
+    position: 'relative',
+    width: toRem(220),
+    maxWidth: '100%',
+    aspectRatio: '9 / 16',
+    margin: '0 auto',
+    overflow: 'hidden',
+    backgroundColor: color.Surface.Container,
+  },
+]);
+
+// Fills the aspect box; used for both the <button> facade and the <a> fallback.
+export const EmbedFacade = style([
+  DefaultReset,
+  {
+    position: 'absolute',
+    inset: 0,
+    width: '100%',
+    height: '100%',
+    display: 'block',
+    padding: 0,
+    border: 'none',
+    background: 'none',
+    cursor: 'pointer',
+
+    ':hover': {
+      filter: 'brightness(0.85)',
+    },
+  },
+]);
+
+export const EmbedIframe = style([
+  DefaultReset,
+  {
+    position: 'absolute',
+    inset: 0,
+    width: '100%',
+    height: '100%',
+    border: 0,
+    display: 'block',
+  },
+]);
+
+export const EmbedPlaceholder = style([
+  DefaultReset,
+  {
+    position: 'absolute',
+    inset: 0,
+    display: 'flex',
+    alignItems: 'center',
+    justifyContent: 'center',
+    backgroundColor: '#111111',
+    color: '#ffffff',
+    fontSize: toRem(28),
+  },
+]);
+
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 // Shared square artwork thumbnail (Spotify, IMDb poster, Discord icon)
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
diff --git a/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreviewCard.tsx b/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreviewCard.tsx
index d8ac48972..7ba148479 100644
--- a/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreviewCard.tsx
+++ b/src/app/components/url-preview/UrlPreviewCard.tsx
@@ -17,6 +17,16 @@ import { mxcUrlToHttp } from '../../utils/matrix';
 import { useMediaAuthentication } from '../../hooks/useMediaAuthentication';
 import { ImageViewer } from '../image-viewer';
 import { onEnterOrSpace } from '../../utils/keyboard';
+import { useSetting } from '../../state/hooks/settings';
+import { settingsAtom } from '../../state/settings';
+import {
+  buildVideoEmbedUrl,
+  getVimeoVideoId,
+  getYouTubeVideoId,
+  getYoutubeShortsId,
+  isYouTubeShorts,
+  VideoEmbedProvider,
+} from '../../utils/videoEmbed';
 
 const linkStyles = { color: color.Success.Main };
 
@@ -44,53 +54,6 @@ type CardVariant =
   | 'tenor'
   | 'generic';
 
-function getYouTubeVideoId(url: string): string | null {
-  try {
-    const parsed = new URL(url);
-    const { hostname, pathname, searchParams } = parsed;
-
-    // youtu.be/<id>
-    if (hostname === 'youtu.be') {
-      const id = pathname.slice(1).split('/')[0];
-      return id || null;
-    }
-
-    // youtube.com/watch?v=<id>
-    if (hostname === 'www.youtube.com' || hostname === 'youtube.com') {
-      if (pathname === '/watch') {
-        return searchParams.get('v');
-      }
-      // youtube.com/shorts/<id> — handled by isYouTubeShorts
-      const shortsMatch = pathname.match(/^\/shorts\/([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)/);
-      if (shortsMatch) return shortsMatch[1];
-    }
-  } catch {
-    // ignore malformed URLs
-  }
-  return null;
-}
-
-function isYouTubeShorts(url: string): boolean {
-  try {
-    const { hostname, pathname } = new URL(url);
-    if (hostname !== 'www.youtube.com' && hostname !== 'youtube.com') return false;
-    return /^\/shorts\/[A-Za-z0-9_-]+/.test(pathname);
-  } catch {
-    return false;
-  }
-}
-
-function getYoutubeShortsId(url: string): string | null {
-  try {
-    const { hostname, pathname } = new URL(url);
-    if (hostname !== 'www.youtube.com' && hostname !== 'youtube.com') return null;
-    const m = pathname.match(/^\/shorts\/([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)/);
-    return m ? m[1] : null;
-  } catch {
-    return null;
-  }
-}
-
 function isTikTok(url: string): boolean {
   try {
     const { hostname } = new URL(url);
@@ -111,18 +74,6 @@ function getTikTokUsername(url: string): string | null {
   }
 }
 
-function getVimeoVideoId(url: string): string | null {
-  try {
-    const parsed = new URL(url);
-    const { hostname, pathname } = parsed;
-    if (hostname !== 'vimeo.com' && hostname !== 'www.vimeo.com') return null;
-    const m = pathname.match(/^\/(\d+)/);
-    return m ? m[1] : null;
-  } catch {
-    return null;
-  }
-}
-
 function isGitHubRepo(url: string): boolean {
   try {
     const parsed = new URL(url);
@@ -483,153 +434,21 @@ function SiteBadge({ label, colorClass }: { label: string; colorClass: string })
   );
 }
 
-// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-// Shared VideoCard — used by YouTube (non-Shorts) and Vimeo
-// ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-function VideoCard({
-  url,
-  prev,
-  thumbnailUrl,
-  siteBadgeLabel,
-  siteBadgeClass,
-  showPlayButton,
-}: {
-  url: string;
-  prev: IPreviewUrlResponse;
-  thumbnailUrl: string;
-  siteBadgeLabel: string;
-  siteBadgeClass: string;
-  showPlayButton?: boolean;
-}) {
-  const title = prev['og:title'] ?? '';
-  const description = prev['og:description'] ?? '';
-
-  return (
-    <>
-      <a
-        href={url}
-        target="_blank"
-        rel="noreferrer"
-        className={previewCss.MediaThumbnailWrapper}
-        aria-label={`Watch on ${siteBadgeLabel}: ${title}`}
-      >
-        <img
-          className={previewCss.MediaThumbnailImg}
-          src={thumbnailUrl}
-          alt={title}
-          loading="lazy"
-        />
-        {showPlayButton !== false && (
-          <div className={previewCss.MediaPlayOverlay}>
-            <div className={previewCss.MediaPlayButton}>
-              <Icon size="400" src={Icons.Play} />
-            </div>
-          </div>
-        )}
-      </a>
-      <UrlPreviewContent>
-        <Text
-          style={linkStyles}
-          truncate
-          as="a"
-          href={url}
-          target="_blank"
-          rel="noreferrer"
-          size="T200"
-          priority="300"
-        >
-          <SiteBadge label={siteBadgeLabel} colorClass={siteBadgeClass} />
-        </Text>
-        {title && (
-          <Text truncate priority="400">
-            <b>{title}</b>
-          </Text>
-        )}
-        {description && (
-          <Text size="T200" priority="300">
-            <UrlPreviewDescription>{description}</UrlPreviewDescription>
-          </Text>
-        )}
-      </UrlPreviewContent>
-    </>
-  );
-}
-
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 // Card 1: YouTube Shorts
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
 function YouTubeShortsCard({ url, prev }: { url: string; prev: IPreviewUrlResponse }) {
-  const videoId = getYoutubeShortsId(url) ?? '';
-  const thumbnailSrc = `https://img.youtube.com/vi/${videoId}/mqdefault.jpg`;
-  const title = prev['og:title'] ?? '';
-  // YouTube Shorts og:description is often the channel name
-  const rawDescription = (prev['og:description'] as string | undefined) ?? '';
-  const channelName = rawDescription.length < 80 ? rawDescription : null;
-
   return (
-    <>
-      {/* Header bar with Shorts badge */}
-      <div className={previewCss.ShortsHeader}>
-        <SiteBadge label="Shorts" colorClass={previewCss.BadgeYouTubeShorts} />
-        <Text size="T200" priority="300" style={{ opacity: 0.7 }}>
-          YouTube
-        </Text>
-      </div>
-      {/* Side-by-side layout */}
-      <div className={previewCss.PortraitSideLayout}>
-        <a
-          href={url}
-          target="_blank"
-          rel="noreferrer"
-          className={previewCss.PortraitThumbnail}
-          aria-label={`Watch Short: ${title}`}
-        >
-          <img
-            className={previewCss.PortraitThumbnailImg}
-            src={thumbnailSrc}
-            alt={title}
-            loading="lazy"
-          />
-          <div className={previewCss.PortraitPlayOverlay}>
-            <div className={previewCss.PortraitPlayButton}>▶</div>
-          </div>
-        </a>
-        <Box grow="Yes" direction="Column" gap="100">
-          {title && (
-            <Text
-              priority="400"
-              style={{
-                fontWeight: 700,
-                display: '-webkit-box',
-                WebkitLineClamp: 2,
-                WebkitBoxOrient: 'vertical',
-                overflow: 'hidden',
-              }}
-            >
-              {title}
-            </Text>
-          )}
-          {channelName && (
-            <Text size="T200" priority="300" style={{ opacity: 0.65 }}>
-              {channelName}
-            </Text>
-          )}
-          <Text
-            size="T200"
-            priority="300"
-            style={{ opacity: 0.5, marginTop: 'auto' }}
-            as="a"
-            href={url}
-            target="_blank"
-            rel="noreferrer"
-          >
-            youtube.com
-          </Text>
-        </Box>
-      </div>
-    </>
+    <VideoEmbedCard
+      url={url}
+      prev={prev}
+      provider="youtube"
+      videoId={getYoutubeShortsId(url) ?? ''}
+      portrait
+      siteBadgeLabel="Shorts"
+      siteBadgeClass={previewCss.BadgeYouTubeShorts}
+    />
   );
 }
 
@@ -1098,15 +917,136 @@ function RedditCard({
 // Remaining card variants (unchanged from original)
 // ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-function YouTubeCard({ url, prev }: { url: string; prev: IPreviewUrlResponse }) {
-  const videoId = getYouTubeVideoId(url)!;
-  const thumbnailSrc = `https://img.youtube.com/vi/${videoId}/mqdefault.jpg`;
+// Media-forward video tile with a privacy-friendly click-to-play facade: shows
+// the homeserver's cached thumbnail + a play button; only on click does it swap
+// in the (cookie-less) YouTube / Vimeo iframe, so nothing loads from the third
+// party until the user presses play. Gated by the `inlineMediaEmbeds` setting —
+// when off it falls back to a link that opens the video in a new tab.
+function VideoEmbedCard({
+  url,
+  prev,
+  provider,
+  videoId,
+  portrait,
+  siteBadgeLabel,
+  siteBadgeClass,
+}: {
+  url: string;
+  prev: IPreviewUrlResponse;
+  provider: VideoEmbedProvider;
+  videoId: string;
+  portrait?: boolean;
+  siteBadgeLabel: string;
+  siteBadgeClass: string;
+}) {
+  const mx = useMatrixClient();
+  const useAuthentication = useMediaAuthentication();
+  const [inlineMediaEmbeds] = useSetting(settingsAtom, 'inlineMediaEmbeds');
+  const [playing, setPlaying] = useState(false);
+
+  const title = prev['og:title'] ?? '';
+  const description = prev['og:description'] ?? '';
+  const mxcImage = prev['og:image'] as string | undefined;
+  const thumbnailUrl = mxcImage
+    ? mxcUrlToHttp(
+        mx,
+        mxcImage,
+        useAuthentication,
+        portrait ? 320 : 480,
+        portrait ? 568 : 270,
+        'scale',
+        false,
+      )
+    : undefined;
+
+  const mediaClass = portrait ? previewCss.EmbedMediaPortrait : previewCss.EmbedMediaLandscape;
+
+  const thumb = thumbnailUrl ? (
+    <img className={previewCss.MediaThumbnailImg} src={thumbnailUrl} alt={title} loading="lazy" />
+  ) : (
+    <span className={previewCss.EmbedPlaceholder}>
+      <Icon size="600" src={Icons.Play} />
+    </span>
+  );
+  const playOverlay = (
+    <span className={previewCss.MediaPlayOverlay}>
+      <span className={previewCss.MediaPlayButton}>
+        <Icon size="400" src={Icons.Play} />
+      </span>
+    </span>
+  );
 
   return (
-    <VideoCard
+    <Box direction="Column">
+      <div className={mediaClass}>
+        {playing ? (
+          <iframe
+            className={previewCss.EmbedIframe}
+            src={buildVideoEmbedUrl(provider, videoId)}
+            title={title || siteBadgeLabel}
+            allow="autoplay; encrypted-media; picture-in-picture; fullscreen; clipboard-write"
+            sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation"
+            allowFullScreen
+            loading="lazy"
+          />
+        ) : inlineMediaEmbeds ? (
+          <button
+            type="button"
+            className={previewCss.EmbedFacade}
+            onClick={() => setPlaying(true)}
+            aria-label={`Play: ${title || siteBadgeLabel}`}
+          >
+            {thumb}
+            {playOverlay}
+          </button>
+        ) : (
+          <a
+            href={url}
+            target="_blank"
+            rel="noreferrer"
+            className={previewCss.EmbedFacade}
+            aria-label={`Watch on ${siteBadgeLabel}: ${title}`}
+          >
+            {thumb}
+            {playOverlay}
+          </a>
+        )}
+      </div>
+      <UrlPreviewContent>
+        <Text
+          style={linkStyles}
+          truncate
+          as="a"
+          href={url}
+          target="_blank"
+          rel="noreferrer"
+          size="T200"
+          priority="300"
+        >
+          <SiteBadge label={siteBadgeLabel} colorClass={siteBadgeClass} />
+        </Text>
+        {title && (
+          <Text truncate priority="400">
+            <b>{title}</b>
+          </Text>
+        )}
+        {description && (
+          <Text size="T200" priority="300">
+            <UrlPreviewDescription>{description}</UrlPreviewDescription>
+          </Text>
+        )}
+      </UrlPreviewContent>
+    </Box>
+  );
+}
+
+function YouTubeCard({ url, prev }: { url: string; prev: IPreviewUrlResponse }) {
+  return (
+    <VideoEmbedCard
       url={url}
       prev={prev}
-      thumbnailUrl={thumbnailSrc}
+      provider="youtube"
+      videoId={getYouTubeVideoId(url) ?? ''}
       siteBadgeLabel="YouTube"
       siteBadgeClass=""
     />
@@ -1114,14 +1054,12 @@ function YouTubeCard({ url, prev }: { url: string; prev: IPreviewUrlResponse })
 }
 
 function VimeoCard({ url, prev }: { url: string; prev: IPreviewUrlResponse }) {
-  // Vimeo always includes og:image for video thumbnails
-  const thumbnailSrc = (prev['og:image'] as string | undefined) ?? '';
-
   return (
-    <VideoCard
+    <VideoEmbedCard
       url={url}
       prev={prev}
-      thumbnailUrl={thumbnailSrc}
+      provider="vimeo"
+      videoId={getVimeoVideoId(url) ?? ''}
       siteBadgeLabel="Vimeo"
       siteBadgeClass={previewCss.BadgeVimeo}
     />
diff --git a/src/app/features/settings/general/General.tsx b/src/app/features/settings/general/General.tsx
index a547ba2d1..5b09b0e25 100644
--- a/src/app/features/settings/general/General.tsx
+++ b/src/app/features/settings/general/General.tsx
@@ -2250,6 +2250,7 @@ function Messages() {
   const [mediaAutoLoad, setMediaAutoLoad] = useSetting(settingsAtom, 'mediaAutoLoad');
   const [urlPreview, setUrlPreview] = useSetting(settingsAtom, 'urlPreview');
   const [encUrlPreview, setEncUrlPreview] = useSetting(settingsAtom, 'encUrlPreview');
+  const [inlineMediaEmbeds, setInlineMediaEmbeds] = useSetting(settingsAtom, 'inlineMediaEmbeds');
   const [showHiddenEvents, setShowHiddenEvents] = useSetting(settingsAtom, 'showHiddenEvents');
   const [enforceRetentionLocally, setEnforceRetentionLocally] = useSetting(
     settingsAtom,
@@ -2344,6 +2345,15 @@ function Messages() {
           after={<Switch variant="Primary" value={encUrlPreview} onChange={setEncUrlPreview} />}
         />
       </SequenceCard>
+      <SequenceCard className={SequenceCardStyle} variant="SurfaceVariant" direction="Column">
+        <SettingTile
+          title="Inline Media Players"
+          description="Play YouTube and Vimeo links right in the chat. Nothing loads from the video site until you press play."
+          after={
+            <Switch variant="Primary" value={inlineMediaEmbeds} onChange={setInlineMediaEmbeds} />
+          }
+        />
+      </SequenceCard>
       <SequenceCard className={SequenceCardStyle} variant="SurfaceVariant" direction="Column">
         <SettingTile
           title="Show Hidden Events"
diff --git a/src/app/state/settings.ts b/src/app/state/settings.ts
index e57c47491..1c91f59ac 100644
--- a/src/app/state/settings.ts
+++ b/src/app/state/settings.ts
@@ -182,6 +182,7 @@ export interface Settings {
   mediaAutoLoad: boolean;
   urlPreview: boolean;
   encUrlPreview: boolean;
+  inlineMediaEmbeds: boolean;
   showHiddenEvents: boolean;
   // [MSC1763] Opt-in: permanently redact your OWN messages once a room's
   // retention window passes (default off — nothing auto-deletes by surprise).
@@ -290,6 +291,7 @@ const defaultSettings: Settings = {
   mediaAutoLoad: true,
   urlPreview: true,
   encUrlPreview: true,
+  inlineMediaEmbeds: true,
   showHiddenEvents: false,
   enforceRetentionLocally: false,
   legacyUsernameColor: false,
diff --git a/src/app/utils/videoEmbed.test.ts b/src/app/utils/videoEmbed.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..6a80cfb3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/app/utils/videoEmbed.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+import { test } from 'node:test';
+import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
+import {
+  getYouTubeVideoId,
+  getYoutubeShortsId,
+  isYouTubeShorts,
+  getVimeoVideoId,
+  parseVideoEmbed,
+  buildVideoEmbedUrl,
+} from './videoEmbed';
+
+test('getYouTubeVideoId: watch / youtu.be / embed / shorts', () => {
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ'), 'dQw4w9WgXcQ');
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ'), 'dQw4w9WgXcQ');
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ?t=42'), 'dQw4w9WgXcQ');
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://www.youtube.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ'), 'dQw4w9WgXcQ');
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://youtube.com/shorts/abc123DEF_-'), 'abc123DEF_-');
+});
+
+test('getYouTubeVideoId: non-YouTube / malformed → null', () => {
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://vimeo.com/123'), null);
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('not a url'), null);
+  assert.equal(getYouTubeVideoId('https://www.youtube.com/'), null);
+});
+
+test('Shorts detection', () => {
+  assert.equal(isYouTubeShorts('https://www.youtube.com/shorts/abc123'), true);
+  assert.equal(isYouTubeShorts('https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abc123'), false);
+  assert.equal(getYoutubeShortsId('https://youtube.com/shorts/abc123'), 'abc123');
+});
+
+test('getVimeoVideoId', () => {
+  assert.equal(getVimeoVideoId('https://vimeo.com/123456789'), '123456789');
+  assert.equal(getVimeoVideoId('https://vimeo.com/123456789/abcdef'), '123456789');
+  assert.equal(getVimeoVideoId('https://vimeo.com/channels/staffpicks'), null);
+  assert.equal(getVimeoVideoId('https://youtube.com/watch?v=x'), null);
+});
+
+test('parseVideoEmbed: routes provider + portrait for shorts', () => {
+  assert.deepEqual(parseVideoEmbed('https://youtube.com/shorts/abc'), {
+    provider: 'youtube',
+    id: 'abc',
+    portrait: true,
+  });
+  assert.deepEqual(parseVideoEmbed('https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyz'), {
+    provider: 'youtube',
+    id: 'xyz',
+    portrait: false,
+  });
+  assert.deepEqual(parseVideoEmbed('https://vimeo.com/42'), {
+    provider: 'vimeo',
+    id: '42',
+    portrait: false,
+  });
+  assert.equal(parseVideoEmbed('https://example.com/video'), null);
+});
+
+test('buildVideoEmbedUrl: cookie-less YouTube + Vimeo, id encoded', () => {
+  assert.equal(
+    buildVideoEmbedUrl('youtube', 'dQw4w9WgXcQ'),
+    'https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/dQw4w9WgXcQ?autoplay=1&rel=0',
+  );
+  assert.equal(
+    buildVideoEmbedUrl('vimeo', '123456789'),
+    'https://player.vimeo.com/video/123456789?autoplay=1',
+  );
+  // id is URL-encoded (defense-in-depth; ids are normally already safe)
+  assert.ok(buildVideoEmbedUrl('youtube', 'a/b').includes('a%2Fb'));
+});
diff --git a/src/app/utils/videoEmbed.ts b/src/app/utils/videoEmbed.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fcfe7acb7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/app/utils/videoEmbed.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,90 @@
+// Pure helpers for detecting embeddable video URLs (YouTube, Shorts, Vimeo) and
+// building their privacy-friendly embed URLs. No React/DOM/CSS imports so this
+// stays unit-testable in isolation.
+
+export type VideoEmbedProvider = 'youtube' | 'vimeo';
+
+export type VideoEmbed = {
+  provider: VideoEmbedProvider;
+  id: string;
+  portrait: boolean; // YouTube Shorts render 9:16
+};
+
+export function getYouTubeVideoId(url: string): string | null {
+  try {
+    const { hostname, pathname, searchParams } = new URL(url);
+    // youtu.be/<id>
+    if (hostname === 'youtu.be') {
+      const id = pathname.slice(1).split('/')[0];
+      return id || null;
+    }
+    if (hostname === 'www.youtube.com' || hostname === 'youtube.com') {
+      // youtube.com/watch?v=<id>
+      if (pathname === '/watch') return searchParams.get('v');
+      // youtube.com/embed/<id>
+      const embedMatch = pathname.match(/^\/embed\/([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)/);
+      if (embedMatch) return embedMatch[1];
+      // youtube.com/shorts/<id> (also matched by getYoutubeShortsId)
+      const shortsMatch = pathname.match(/^\/shorts\/([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)/);
+      if (shortsMatch) return shortsMatch[1];
+    }
+  } catch {
+    // ignore malformed URLs
+  }
+  return null;
+}
+
+export function isYouTubeShorts(url: string): boolean {
+  try {
+    const { hostname, pathname } = new URL(url);
+    if (hostname !== 'www.youtube.com' && hostname !== 'youtube.com') return false;
+    return /^\/shorts\/[A-Za-z0-9_-]+/.test(pathname);
+  } catch {
+    return false;
+  }
+}
+
+export function getYoutubeShortsId(url: string): string | null {
+  try {
+    const { hostname, pathname } = new URL(url);
+    if (hostname !== 'www.youtube.com' && hostname !== 'youtube.com') return null;
+    const m = pathname.match(/^\/shorts\/([A-Za-z0-9_-]+)/);
+    return m ? m[1] : null;
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
+}
+
+export function getVimeoVideoId(url: string): string | null {
+  try {
+    const { hostname, pathname } = new URL(url);
+    if (hostname !== 'vimeo.com' && hostname !== 'www.vimeo.com') return null;
+    const m = pathname.match(/^\/(\d+)/);
+    return m ? m[1] : null;
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
+}
+
+/** Detect an embeddable video from any URL, or null if it isn't one. */
+export function parseVideoEmbed(url: string): VideoEmbed | null {
+  const shortsId = getYoutubeShortsId(url);
+  if (shortsId) return { provider: 'youtube', id: shortsId, portrait: true };
+  const ytId = getYouTubeVideoId(url);
+  if (ytId) return { provider: 'youtube', id: ytId, portrait: false };
+  const vimeoId = getVimeoVideoId(url);
+  if (vimeoId) return { provider: 'vimeo', id: vimeoId, portrait: false };
+  return null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Build the click-to-play embed URL. YouTube uses the cookie-less
+ * youtube-nocookie host so nothing is set until the user presses play.
+ */
+export function buildVideoEmbedUrl(provider: VideoEmbedProvider, id: string): string {
+  const safeId = encodeURIComponent(id);
+  if (provider === 'vimeo') {
+    return `https://player.vimeo.com/video/${safeId}?autoplay=1`;
+  }
+  return `https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/${safeId}?autoplay=1&rel=0`;
+}